She glanced up from the computer to gaze out the window. It was gray and the water streamed down the transparent glass outside. It had been a few days since the steam room incident, and she had done a good job of thoroughly avoiding Vegeta.

Bulma’s blue eyes glazed over as she let her mind wander for a moment. It was a rainy day, and she never could concentrate in that type of atmosphere. She wondered if he had been angry that she’d had the nerve to slap him. She had mused that he would have probably blasted her as she ran if he was that angry. He had gone the past few days without trying to kill her or blow up her section of the building.

Bulma's whole body flinched as she came back from her daydream. Maybe it would be ok to show up at breakfast and go out into the yard during the day. How mad could he be?

- - - - - - - - - -

He felt his teeth clench harder as his muscles ached from strain. His arms were torn apart and he could only see them in the cloud of sweat and blood that choked his view. He finally completed the pushup and let himself drop, reaching over to the wristband and clicking the button that literally lifted the weight of the world off of his shoulders.

Vegeta sat up and took a few deep breaths before standing slowly, letting himself smirk as he lounged in the aches and pains that came along with it. The Saiyan literally believed that if there was no pain after the workout, there was nothing gained during it. He relished in barely being able to move, knowing that he’d feel the increase in power once he rested.

He pulled the band off of his arm and set it on the hook in the doorway on his way out. Punching the simple code, he locked the gravity chamber down for the night. Vegeta snorted when he felt droplets of water pelting his nose, and the rest of him from above. He lifted his gaze and wiped his eyes more as water mixed in with the drying sweat.

Vegeta was still getting used to the fact that water had a tendency to fall from the sky on this planet. He sneered and continued in, wondering if that short walk in the rain could suffice for a shower.

"Damnit Vegeta! My mother just had the floors waxed. Go use the backdoor!"

He was rudely jolted out of his musings as his gaze jerked to see Bulma. She was standing in the kitchen with a glass of .... something in her hand, and looking at him as if he’d just rolled in feces.

He folded his arms, ignoring the pangs of pain from the swollen sores, and glared at her. "Are you going to try to assault me again if I don’t?" he asked simply, earning just what he wished for in her tensing stance.

She turned with an annoyed human-ish growl and set the glass on the counter, keeping her back to him. "Just get OUT! Unlike your planet of barbarians, we don’t consider bloodstains all over the house a fashion statement!" she yelled

His nose twitched once, and he lowered his arms, lifting the towel her mother left for him from the coat rack and wiping it across his face. The deep red/black stain that one wipe left made him wonder how horrible he did look.

Vegeta walked right through the kitchen, and stopped for a split second "I come through here every night, sometimes in worse conditions. Now tell me wench, have you ever once seen my blood on the floor?" he continued without waiting for an answer, and even added a last comment to prevent an answer.

"I come out this late to avoid you annoying weaklings," he added, just loud enough for her to hear, and continued to his given room.

"Tch," he spat as he wiped another drop of liquid from his brow. So much for a snack.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Bulma looked to her hand as it clenched the countertop. She let out a breath, thankful he’d not seen her face flush when he mentioned the slap. Her lips made a thin line as her brows drew down, wondering why he insisted on being such a jerk! If he hated them that much, why not live in the damned woods?

She placed her glass in the sink, watching as the robotic cleaning machine did its job almost soundlessly. Her eyes went out of focus as her thought-train drifted. She wondered to herself why she found it so hard to look Vegeta in the eye. She’d been taught from a young age that when speaking to someone, eye contact is crucial. It lets them know you will not back down. That you have confidence in yourself and what you are saying.

It’s also a great way to cover a lie.

She ignored the slight tickle on her arm, lost in her own musings. Bulma found herself thinking that the only time she dared to meet his gaze was the first she saw him on Namek. It’d been so intense that she’d likely trained herself not to do it from then on.

Suddenly slapping her arm with a hiss, she finally ‘awoke’ from her daydream. Her face contorted as she looked to see a red spot and the tiny smashed body of a mosquito.

"Damn," she said softly, flicking the dead bug and rubbing the area. Bulma growled and walked to the door Vegeta had came through and closed it angrily. How many times had that genius done that? Anyone could have walked in!

Bulma ascended the stairs to her room, not even thinking that the Prince may have been too distracted to close the door. She also didn’t stop to think of why she’d stayed up so late, knowing he would make an entrance around that time.

Without any thought, she slipped into her sleepwear, and drifted slowly into the depths of her dreams.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

His eyes snapped open and he snarled out loud. Vegeta had been plagued with dreams lately, and not the kind he liked. In his old dreams, he stood over a valley of adoring Saiyan followers, all chanting the ancient oath to the kingdom he ruled. His power was beyond proportions that they could imagine, and he knew he would rule without fail until his own death. His tail arched high and lashing behind him, under no threat as he inclined his chin to his people. Those were good dreams.

Not tonight. Not any night since his confrontation with the loud mouthed woman. His dreams were plagued with flashing scenes of her. The most of what he saw was a reminder of the day in the steam room. Her hair wet down and plastered to her face, teeth bared and eyes flashing. No fear.

He hated it. Vegeta swallowed any emotion he had and ripped the sheets from his nude body. Standing and gazing out the window he breathed slower, closing his eyes and letting himself think for a moment.

He shut out thoughts of the woman, not even lingering on why they came, and focused on his normal dreams. His own mouth opened slightly to bare his sharp teeth at nothing. His tail no longer existed. There would never be enough Saiyans to fill a valley, much less worship him as their king. There were only two full-blooded Saiyans left at most, and the bloodline would diminish slowly over generations.

No, none of his dreams would ever come true. His life had been a nightmare, and the only pleasure he’d gained (and would likely ever gain) was from the kill.

The kill! Showing another being he was more powerful. Reminding himself of how powerful he was, and would be. The beings he fought with now thought of him as malicious. They believed him to be someone who would kill without thought, and without remorse. Granted he did not contest…let them think what they would.

He killed once a challenge was made. He killed to defend, and he killed for his own survival in the case that he needed to eat. Freeza had been the only one to add 'kill for orders' to the list. He’d often wait for a challenger to confront him when purging planets. Vegeta would finish off the strongest warrior and leave Nappa to take the rest. Honestly, Vegeta had not killed in years. Training had filled the void in his life. It had pushed the reality of his doom to the back of his mind. Knowing a challenge would come was the only real drive that kept him going now.

The Prince snarled and opened his eyes, reaching for a discarded pair of shorts. He quickly put them on and took off without heading any thoughts to sleeping housemates. The energy trail he left shook the house once, and followed him into the night sky.

He needed to eat.

- - - - - - - - -

Bulma awoke with a start as the house shook. A stray glance at the clock proved it couldn’t be Vegeta. He always slept at least four hours a night, and it was still during that four-hour slot.

She jumped out of bed and gazed out her french doors, putting her arms around herself unconsciously. Her eyes focused slowly on a dying ki trail. She’d grown used to the color, speed and general look ki trails had, and wondered where Vegeta was off to.

Bulma bit her lip and drummed her fingers on her arms. Her body moved to get dressed, but she stopped and thought. Why in the world is she even thinking of following him?She looked up to the ceiling and thought. Her eyes sparked and she slid shoes on, grabbing a simple robe on the way out. This was the perfect time to test her ki-tracker.

Bulma managed to keep a light step as she ran out the kitchen door and across the lawn to her outdoor lab. She typed in the code and flinched a bit as the large doors made noise pulling open, but trotted in as soon as they were open wide enough. She grabbed a device that looked very similar to the dragon radar and jumped into the open cockpit of her air car. Turning it on, she plugged the ki-tracker into the specially built power source and waited as the screen flickered to life, lighting the interior.

Her eyes scanned over the screen and she was about to slump in defeat when a small dot appeared with a blip noise. Her mouthed turned up to a grin as she closed the shield and brought the aircar to life, lifting it off the ground and following the retreating dot on the screen.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Vegeta lifted his head a bit and took in a quick breath through his nose, and a slightly opened mouth. The cool night air caressed his skin as he landed on bare feet. The grass he stood on was wet with dew, and the only available light was given by the starlit sky above.

His eyes adjusted immediately and he began his hunt. He walked quickly, keeping the scent trail he followed, knowing only that his prey was large, quick, and red-blooded. Vegeta’s mind was blank, and no thoughts entered his mind in this primal state. The anticipation and exhilarating feeling prickled his ki, but he kept it down. He felt the animal’s ki to be much lower, and he lowered his to nearly match it. Vegeta wanted a challenge this night. He wanted to hunt, kill, and eat his prey in the darkness. The only thing missing from this perfect wish was to have comrades to eat their own kill with.

On old missions, they would each take off in different directions, and return with their kills to sit and eat. They would tell the story of the kill if it was an exiting one, or just sit in silence, filling the air with only the sounds of tearing flesh and grunts of satisfaction.

He crouched low as he picked up the first hint of the beast walking ahead of him. Vegeta diverted his eyes upward and leapt up onto a low, thick tree branch for a better view. He sat crouched, and quickly stifled another musing wish that he had his tail lashing with anticipation behind him. His feline prey walked in forward with intent, most likely for a mid-night drink. The beast had the slight scent of blood on it’s trail, and had most likely just finished a kill of it’s own.

Vegeta smirked and shot forward.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

Bulma landed the air car on a patch of grass outside the woods. She had sat in the air and watched the dot flow forward at an even pace, and then stop. She figured him to have landed at that point, and from there he had moved slowly forward. After the landing, Bulma had swallowed hard with worry as the dot reduced in brightness, almost to the point where she couldn’t see it. To her relief, it stayed at the low frequency and continued to move.

She landed in the area that he had done the same, and opened the cockpit shield, undoing her seatbelt at the same time. Shifting her hair out of her eyes, she squinted in confusion as the dot moved erratically around one area, shifting in brightness. She nearly jumped out and ran to see what was going on, figuring him to be in some sort of fight. But why lower his ki?

Bulma sat in the open cockpit, her chin on her hand, staring at the ki-tracker for a few minutes. Finally, the dot stopped and remained in one area. It grew slightly brighter at that point. Now to see if it had worked. She clicked the side button to save the image, and jumped out of the cockpit. Bulma didn’t give a second thought to the fact that she was in a robe.

Only when she heard a low howl from behind her, and she took off running into the woods did she think of that.

"Shit Shit Shit Shit shit!" she hissed softly to herself as she ran. After getting herself pretty deep into the thickening woods, Bulma stopped, breathing in short gasps.

She hunched over and looked at the glowing tracker. Tracing a red-painted fingernail over it, she followed the path she’d likely just taken and followed it to the dot. According to the tracker, he should just be several meters from where she stood.

Bulma got her bearings together and breathed more softly. Trying to ignore the suddenly frightening sounds of the woods, she reached down and undid her shoes. Her unaccustomed eyes tried to focus in the darkened woods. She took a deep breath as she stood, beginning to walk softly on bare feet towards the place where he should be.

She opened her ears to the furthest extend and crouched low when she heard a light shuffling in the grass field ahead of her. Knowing there must be a lake or pond of some sort, Bulma chose to shift her robe and crouch behind a tree, not wanting to expose her form in the flattened grass field. She stared ahead and waited for her begotten eyes to adjust, still hearing the faint nose just ahead of her.

Slowly, his form came into view, and her blue eyes widened as she watched.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Vegeta breathed through his nose as he tore at the still-warm carcass. He ignored the blood smeared across his mouth and fingers for the moment, trying to finish the meal as quickly as he could. The nutrients he needed would only last for so long, and once the kill aged a half-hour or so, it would be practically worthless.

He smirked to himself as he remembered the fight it had given him. His right arm bore 3 parallel scratch wounds, and his leg a small gash where he’d barely dodged a large saber.

His senses were instinctively attuned to all surroundings. Any other predator that would be looking to steal his kill, or even come after himself. Vegeta was more relaxed then he should have been as he bit into a particularly juicy thigh area, and was almost caught by surprise when he heard the noise at the edge of the forest. His eyes also picked up a faint glow as he jerked his head up from his meal. His eyes immediately focused on the blue ones of whom he was sure to be Bulma.

No emotion crossed his face. His mind went blank as he merely stared at her. The male was waiting for the female to back off, or challenge. He was brought back to his senses as he watched her head tilt almost curiously, before she turned back and he heard her soft steps fade away.

He snarled and went back to his meal, shaking all conscious thoughts from his mind.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Bulma nearly jumped as she saw his head snap up and his eyes focus on her. Instinct almost made her look away, but remembering her earlier thoughts, Bulma forced her gaze steadily back to his.

What she saw made her breath catch in her throat.

His black eyes glinted the soft starlight back at her. His brows were drawn down as always, but there was something more intense about the look. She saw more life in that stare then she’s seen from him in the past few months.

Her head tilted to the side as she saw what he was doing. The darkness surrounding his mouth was blood. Bulma swallowed a scream as she realized he was eating a raw, most likely fresh kill. He’d been hunting. Her gaze flicked back to his eyes once more and he still stared. That gaze bore into her memory and she bit her lip, not knowing what to think . Something about it made her dizzy.

Bulma quickly turned and began to walk away, looking back to make sure he wouldn’t follow.

She eventually broke into a run.